Manny Pacquiao Still Has All of Juan Manuel Marquez’s Attention

One of the more bizarre things to happen in boxing over the past year is Juan Manuel Marquez officially and firmly shutting the door on a rematch between him and Manny Pacquiao. In a sport where superstars are few and far between, nobody closes the door on second and third and fourth bouts against the same opponent because often times those are the most lucrative fights one can make.

Surely enough, Marquez has never earned bigger paydays than the ones he received fighting Pacquiao.

Despite that, though, shortly after knocking Pacquiao out in dramatic fashion last December, Marquez came out and said their rivalry was complete. He ignored the calls for a fifth match, and instead focused his attention on a far less anticipated bout against Timothy Bradley. His main justification for doing this, in his own words, is that because he beat Pacquiao in far more definitive fashion than the eight division champ beat him, there was no need for a rematch.

This week, while doing media sessions promoting his showdown against Bradley, Marquez was asked about whether or not he’d be willing to fight Pacquiao again. Surprisingly, he didn’t offer a definitive no.

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“I’m fighting next Saturday,” Marquez said. “Pacquiao will fight in November. I need to wait.”

However, shortly after that, perhaps realizing that he had just left himself open to a lot of gossip and speculation, Marquez clarified.

“I think the chapter with Pacquiao is closed.”

It’s pretty funny how, despite the fact that he made it abundantly clear early in 2013 that he had no intention of fighting Pacquiao again, most of the time you see Marquez’s name in the national press it’s in regards to something he said about the Filipino star.

For what it’s worth, per Boxing Scene's Chris Robinson, he’s picking the favorite to defeat the underdog this November when Pacquiao and Brandon Rios square off.

“Rios is a very strong fighter, but I think Pacquiao will win the fight.”